How to make a right Pig's ear of something- An old english saying. But in German? In english there is a particular expression for if someone makes an extreme mess of something. Say if I saw my friend trying to fix his bike tire but failing very badly and making a mess of it. I would say: "Your making a right pig's ear of that" The expression derives from the old proverb 'you can't make a silk purse out of a sow's ear', which dates from the 16th century. The English clergyman Stephen Gosson published the romantic story Ephemerides in 1579 and in it referred to people who were engaged in a hopeless task: "Seekinge too make a silke purse of a Sowes eare." 'Make a pig's ear of' alludes to what might be the result if someone did try to make something from a sow's ear - not a silk purse but a complete mess. Is there a german expression like this I could use?